CAIR-NJ to Host Press Conference Outside Rep. Pou’s Office Condemning AIPAC-Funded Trip During Gaza Genocide, Paterson Water Crisis

(NEWARK, NJ, 8/19/2025) — On Thursday, August 21, at 10 a.m., the New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NJ) and American Muslims for Palestine-New Jersey will host a press conference outside U.S. Rep. Nellie Pou’s office to condemn her trip to Israel that was paid for by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). Pou’s District 9 includes the cities of Paterson and Clifton, which are home to one of the largest Palestinian communities in the country.

WHERE: 100 Hamilton Plaza, Suite 1400 Paterson, NJ 07505
WHEN: Thursday, Aug. 21, at 10 a.m. ET
CONTACT: CAIR-NJ Communications Manager Aya Elamroussi, 551-208-5482, aelamroussi@cair.com
LIVESTREAM: CAIR-NJ Facebook

BACKGROUNDER: Pou was one of 14 House Democrats, 11 of whom are first-term lawmakers, who attended the trip. She was joined by her Democrat colleague US Rep. Herb Conaway (NJ-3). Pou was on the trip while thousands of her constituents endured a dayslong water crisis caused by a major main break. Last month, Pou issued a statement calling for aid to enter Gaza and claimed that “a permanent ceasefire must take hold.”

CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.

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CAIR-NJ Condemns Representatives Nellie Pou & Herb Conaway AIPAC-Funded Trip to Israel

(NEWARK, NJ – 8/14/2025) — The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NJ) today condemned Congresswomen Nellie Pou and Congressman Herb Conaway for participating in an AIPAC-sponsored trip to Israel.

Rep. Conaway & Pou took an AIPAC-funded vacation to Israel during the August Congressional recess instead of helping their constituents who are struggling with basic necessities including rising housing, health care, and food costs.

This trip happened whilst 200,000 residents in North Jersey have little to no water pressure, including Paterson, which is in Rep. Pou’s district and where her office is located.

The trip, arranged by AIPAC, a lobbying organization that advocates for Israel, raises serious ethical concerns, and calls into question Rep. Conaway’s & Rep. Pou’s priorities.

In a video released by AIPAC, Conaway stated “I am more committed than I always have been to ensuring a strengthened partnership between our two countries.”

WATCH: Representative Herb Conaway Visits Israel with AIPAC Affiliated Group

In a statement, CAIR-NJ Executive Director Selaedin Maksut said:

“Were these Representatives elected to serve the interests of their NJ Congressional districts or the Israeli government?”

“While these two mingled with war criminals, Israel’s genocide and mass starvation continued only miles away. Over 61,000 Palestinians killed, hundreds of thousands injured, and tens of thousands missing. Over 200, have starved due to Israel’s blockade, most of them children. The U.S. continues to arm, fund, and protect Israel from accountability as its apartheid regime persists.”

“By accepting travel from AIPAC, these Representatives have signaled that their political influence is open to sway by a lobby with a clear and documented record of advancing policies that harm Palestinian human rights.”

“Congresswoman Nellie Pou’s participation is especially disappointing. We have sat down with her in the past, warned her against accepting AIPAC support, shared stories of how Israel has caused enormous harm to our communities, and yet she does this. Unacceptable. Many of her own Palestinian constituents have families killed by Israel’s brutal genocide in Gaza. What will she say to them?”

Click here to message Representatives Pou and Conaway about their trip!

CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.

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CONTACT: CAIR-NJ Executive Director Selaedin Maksut, 862-264-9414, smaksut@cair.com

CAIR-NJ Condemns Sen. Cory Booker’s Refusal to Block Weapons for Israel’s Genocide, Praises Sen. Andy Kim for His Vote on Sanders’s JRD

(NEWARK, NJ – 8/01/25) – The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NJ) today criticized the NJ U.S. Sen. Cory Booker for his continued support of U.S. weapons transfers to Israel amid the ongoing genocide and mass starvation in Gaza. At the same time, CAIR-NJ praised Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ) for voting in favor of Sen. Bernie Sanders’s Joint Resolutions of Disapproval (S.J.Res.34 and S.J.Res.41) to block U.S. arms sales to Israel.

Sen. Booker has failed to act to stop U.S. complicity in that crisis, including refusing to support Sanders’s resolutions to block offensive weapons shipments.

In a statement addressed to Booker CAIR-NJ Executive Director Selaedin Maksut said:

“We are deeply alarmed by your refusal to support urgent efforts to block U.S. weapons transfers to Israel, which have enabled the ongoing mass killing and starvation of civilians in Gaza. At this stage, inaction is a moral failure. You cannot credibly condemn the suffering in Gaza while voting to fund the tools that cause it.”

In contrast, CAIR-NJ praised Sen. Andy Kim for his principled vote to block weapons sales, joining 26 Democrats in support of blocking the sale of bombs.

“Sen. Kim’s vote reflected moral clarity and a willingness to uphold human rights. His leadership offers a much-needed example at a time when too many elected officials are enabling genocide through inaction.”

CAIR-NJ continues to call on all New Jersey elected officials to:

• Allow unimpeded UN-backed aid into Gaza
• Support an immediate and permanent ceasefire
• End all U.S. weapons transfers to Israel
• Publicly recognize the unfolding genocide in Gaza

CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.

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CONTACT: Executive Director of CAIR-NJ, Selaedin Maksut, 908-668-5900, smaksut@cair.com